The Great Debate UK
Pension deficit weighs on British Airways
– Margaret Doyle is a Reuters columnist. The opinions expressed are her own –
Willie Walsh has no incentive to be bullish right now. He has had British Airways on cold rations since joining as chief executive-designate four years ago, and another set of tough union negotiations looms.
However, a poor set of annual results shows that — even had he wanted to — there is no disguising the pension situation: dire and getting worse.
The accounting deficit widened by 1.2 billion pounds last year. Even that picture is reckoned to be too optimistic.
